Got Your Yule Goat
by Shoestring Nemesis
Summary: Twas a fortnight before Yuletide and all through the castle. The queen wrote invitations though she thought it a hassle. The hour grows late, she's doing all that she can. Until she's interrupted by a Yule goat and a snowman. Elsanna. Icest.


A/N: So I meant to have this done a couple of weeks ago...because of the time period...but alas between the holiday rush and the rust on my fingers it did not happen. However I shall rejoice in the fact that its still the month of December (and still Christmas time to boot) when I finished it. I was reading up on old Norwegian Yule customs and came across this fun little Scandinavian tradition of the Yule goat, and going Yule goat. And I swear all I wanted was to write about Anna going Yule goat and this story was like a tough piece of meat that just kept getting bigger and bigger the more I chewed and somehow its 9000 words. Oh well, I had fun writing it. I hope its a fun read. There is a mismash of traditions here and I don't think anything is accurate..throwing in a wassaling song and a song that hadn't even been written yet for the time period of Frozen. But I'm not at all sorry...actually thats not at all true I'm sorry for everything. Here are some words:

_Julbukk - Yule Goat (He predates Santa!)_

_Julenisse - Yule gnome or elf (So does he!)_

_God Jul - Happy Yule / Happy Christmas_

_Julbukking - The tradition of going Yule goat_

_Julaften - Christmas Eve_

Also the term "Got your goat," as defined by urban dictionary is: to annoy someone to the point of being pissed. So...we can all see where this is going...but there is fluffy Elsanna waiting at this journey's end should you chose to endure. Onward we go...and happy holidays everyone.

Frozen is copyright not by me.

Warning: Icest / mild cursing

* * *

><p>The grandfather clock in the hall struck nine. The consecutive chimes penetrated the silence of the queen's study despite being somewhat muffled by the heavy oak door that separated her from the rest of the castle. That clock tolled every hour upon the hour, and Elsa thought it was strange that she was just now hearing it for the first time that evening. Had it really gotten that late? The room had grown much darker than when she had first shut herself away to work. The only lights that remained were from the diminishing candle on her desk and the dancing glow of the flames in the fireplace. There was a fleeting thought that passed by, casually mentioning that she had long missed dinner. Her stomach followed up with a growl of agreement. She was momentarily disheartened that no one had come to get her. Then again she had asked not to be disturbed, and her staff took that order fairly seriously.<p>

She let the quill drop from her left hand as she flexed her fingers and rotated her wrist. The silence of the room was cut by a gasp and a small whimper. The sharp stiff pain had reminded her just how long she had been signing decrees, evaluating harvest reports, trade negotiations, preparations for the Yule festivities, in addition to writing the invitations to the royals and dignitaries of neighboring kingdoms to attend Arendelle's week long celebration.

That, Elsa surmised, was a foolish endeavor. Not only were these kingdoms tied up with their own festivities but no one in their right mind would travel this far north on a December sea. Even if she hadn't frozen over the fjord again...yet. She would consider it an option, just in case anyone did decide to accept the invitation. She didn't need the extra eyes on her, didn't need to hear the whispers. She didn't need to wade through that sludgy swamp of fake smiles and mock adoration that hid fear and mistrust of a young queen who could wield an ice age on the tips of her fingers, and Elsa had told her advisers as much.

"_But Your Majesty, it would be rude not to send invitations to our allies...what with the gates open __on a more permanent basis __for the first time in thirteen years."_

_"__Very bad form__ not to invite the neighboring kingdoms to all our celebrations...__the gates are open...which means all are welcome does it not?__"_

_"It could be __disastrous__ for trade. We don't want to lose trade partners because of ill feelings of not being included as welcome friends to our__ Yule__ Queen Elsa. Royalty can be very sensitive about these things you know. After all...the gate__s __**are **__open you know."_

Blah blah blah. She agreed to write them, though she procrastinated until the last possible minute entirely on purpose. There was even another idea brewing in her head that involved getting the carrier pigeons drunk on gløgg before sending them on their way. It was a clever plan and she was quite proud of herself for thinking of it.

Besides, the Queen of Arendelle had not been invited to any feasts, balls, or anything of the sort since thawing the kingdom she accidentally froze six months ago, and she was perfectly content with that. She had the acceptance and support of her kingdom, her people, and more importantly...the acceptance, support, and unwavering love of her sister. And after all their years apart it was all she could ever want and more.

Speaking of sister...just where was said Princess of Arendelle? She was never one to abide to the queen's requests to not be disturbed. In fact that usually spurred her into disturbing her more than usual. So it was no wonder really that Elsa never paid attention to clocks anymore. Since becoming queen she didn't have much need for time pieces, she had Anna.

And Anna was _always _barging in with the time.

_"Elsa! It's time for lunch I'm starving!"_

_"Elsa! That meeting sucked the life out of me! C'mon its time to go do something fun!"_

_"Elsa! You've been cooped up in here for houuurrrsssss...its time to take a break! Those moldy parchments will be waiting for you when we get back!"_

_"Ellllllsssssaaaaaaaaa...its time for bed and my room is drafty again! The fire's gone out! Is it okay if I sleep with you? I mean...in your bed? With you in it? It's just...you're warm...my room is cold...like being close to you now...because 13 years...and...I missed you. Can we go to bed now?"_

Funny she had started complaining with the draft in her room at the end of August when she didn't necessarily need a fire. By the fifth night of the same explanation Elsa had shushed her rambling and told her she could sleep with her whenever she wished because frankly, she enjoyed it too, and her room would forevermore be open to her no matter what time of day it was. Though Anna clasped her hands in joy and squealed at that declaration, she absolutely refused to sleep without Elsa next to her. The queen's late evenings would usually end with the princess dragging her away from her work. Or sometimes she would just sit next to her and fidget impatiently until Elsa would just give up on whatever she was working on with a mock exasperated huff.

Truth be told there was nothing Elsa looked forward to more than the two of them spending time together, and she could tell Anna felt the same. So it was puzzling as to why she hadn't seen so much as a freckle of her little sister since breakfast. That must mean she's been out with Kristoff, which was...good, Elsa reasoned. Kristoff was a good man. He was a bit rough around the edges. Okay, he was a lot rough around the edges with deplorable habits and sometimes questionable hygiene. But, he was a good man just the same. She was fairly certain she trusted him with Anna who seemed happy around him, and that was all Elsa really needed to see. Anna's happiness was the most important thing in the world. Even when those strange feelings would rise like bile to the back of her throat on occasion when she saw the two of them together, feelings that she couldn't quite put a finger on. Seeing a smile on her sister's face was worth any price.

Despite her assumption that Anna had gone frolicking with the Royal Ice Master, it was still strange that she hadn't bothered mentioning it. She always let Elsa know when she was leaving the castle. It was common courtesy was it not? This wasn't normal. This wasn't scheduled. This wasn't structured. And though those three words would never describe her red headed sibling, it still frustrated the queen to no end.

Elsa sighed as the ink on her quill froze mid-letter on her invitation to Westleton. With a flick of her wrist she tapped the feather against the desk to dispose of the frost and continue. There was no need to get worked up. Anna would have a good explanation for her absence. Of course, her absence could mean disappearance, kidnapping, trapped in a snow drift, lying motionless at the bottom of a ravine, eaten by a bear. _Oh for God's sake Elsa stop it!_ Anna was an adult and she deserved to be treated as such. She could make her own decisions, run her own life, and she had the good sense to know if she was in danger.

...Sometimes.

_No. Elsa__. __Don't you get up from this chair. You are going to sit here and you are going to finish these invitations and have some faith in your sister. Your little__...__ bab__y...__ sister..._

"She's a grown woman damn it!" Elsa yelled, her voice echoing in the empty room. The low burning flame atop the blob of wax that was once a candle shuddered. Immediately she clasped a hand to her mouth and blushed at her sudden outburst. Clearly she was over thinking this. She glanced at the shimmering tiny bell on the edge of her desk. She could always ring it and have the entire force of Arendelle's military form a search party. No. No. Everything was fine...Anna would turn up...she was going to put trust in her sister, and in the mean time she would get back to work. Dipping the thawed quill back into fresh ink she put it to the paper and began again.

_ueen Elsa of Arendelle cordially request the presence of the royal family of Westle..._

"Wait...Westleton? Who the _hell _ put them on the guest list?"

A growl erupted from her throat as she crumpled the stationary with both hands and tossed it to the far corner of the room where it was devoured by a fat and growing shadow. Elsa was going to have words...with someone...and they wouldn't be pleasant. Her hands found their way to her face while cool fingers pressed against her tired, strained eyes.

Okay so Anna was missing...but there was something else. Pale blue irises peaked out from between fingers as she tried to remember. If Anna was her top of the hour...then Olaf was her half passed, barging in at his leisure to sit by her side and ask her questions like the perpetually inquisitive child...er...snowman... that he was.

_"Elsa...why do flowers make you sneeze?"_

_"Hey Elsa...are you supposed to stack firewood bark side up or bark side down?"_

_"Kristoff says that all men pick their nose and eat their boogers...is that true?"_

_"Do I have boogers? Not that I want to eat them or anything."_

_"__My feet are small. Like really, really small. They'd be small even if I had toes. Do you think foot size matters__? "_

_"Elsa why do your hands shake and your cheeks go all __glowy pink __when you see Anna walk in the room__?__"_

So that little facet of her day had been strangely absent as well. That must mean that wherever Anna was, Olaf was with her. Elsa sighed with relief. Her shoulders relaxed into the back of her chair and she loosened her grip on the upholstered armrests. She would stop this needless worrying because if nothing else, Anna had Olaf, and her snowman would never let anything happen to her. Despite his curiosity he was clever and he knew enough to tell Anna when something was generally a bad idea...

"_Elsa? __Can I have this hat? It looks like a hat. A hat with a handle. T__hough...the brim is kind of low...I can't really see anything. How do I look?"_

_Oh for the love of...Olaf! Take that __chamber pot __off your head this instance!_

Elsa practically threw herself out of the chair and rounded the desk in a determined march to go find the three of them and unearth them from whatever mess they needed rescuing from.

And that's when she heard a familiar knock.

Tap. Tap-Tap. Tap. Tap.

The queen breathed a sigh of relief and attempted to calmly collect her appearance. She returned to the other side of the desk and dragged the chair back to its original position. Hands smoothed the wrinkles out of her dress and she straightened into regal monarch position.

"Come in."

There was about a half dozen heartbeats of silence before the knock came again.

Tap. Tap-Tap. Tap. Tap.

"You may enter!" Elsa raised her voice.

Tap. Tap-Tap. Tap. Tap.

"It's unlocked!"

Tap. Tap-Tap. Tap. Tap.

"I said, you can come in Anna!"

BAM! BAM-BAM! BAM! BAM! The hinges rattled with the force brought from the fist on the other side.

Elsa swallowed hard.

"Anna?"

Now she was beginning to worry as she leapt to her feet and started across the room. A biting unease fluttered up from the base of her spine. Her magic rose and hummed beneath the surface of her skin in response. By the time she was halfway to the door she could hear a familiar voice babbling on the other side.

_"Just open the door."_

_"Why isn't she opening the door?"_

_"Do you think she knows how to open doors?"_

_"Someone really needs to teach you girls about doors."_

Olaf.

_"Shhhhhhhh! I think hear her coming!"_

And his well known accomplice.

The magic ebbed away with her apprehension as she blew out another breath of air that was half relief and half frustration. Not only was this going to be a lecture on informing your sister of your whereabouts so she doesn't worry a hole in the rug, but also one on how not to give her a heart attack and send her to an early grave...or anyone else for that matter. Elsa shook the frost from her hand before grabbing the door knob.

"Really you two, what have I told you about startling me and how that's not a good idea? And anyway where in the world have the both of you..."

The lecture died in her throat when she opened the door wide and her eyes beheld the spectacle before the threshold. Standing in her doorway was her snowman wearing a red stocking cap, a gray vest, and some sort of brown and white fur stuck in the snow around his mouth. Hunched over next to him was Anna, wearing a cut off pair of red long johns several sizes too big with the same "fur" draped around the collar and a mask of some sort strapped to her face. It had a long snout that ended just below her chin, two big ears that flopped with the motion of her head, and a set of horns that jutted just above her hairline. She looked like a...

"Goat." Elsa finished outloud.

Just when she thought it couldn't get any stranger, they started to sing.

_"Thennnnnn here's to the maid in the lily white smock_

_Who tripped to the door and slipped back the lock_

_Who tripped to the door and pulled back the pin_

_For to let these jolly wassailers in!_

_Wassail! wassail! all over the town,_

_Our toast it is white and our ale it is brown;_

_Our bowl it is made of the white maple tree;_

_With the wassailing bowl, we'll drink to thee.__"_

They finished with a great flourish and bowed low as if they were on a stage humbly accepting the thunderous applause of their audience. Elsa was still as a stone save for her mouth which moved slightly as if trying to form a coherent word, but there was none to be had. This entire scenario had lost her to any form of coherency.

"Good evening Your Majesty!" Her goat sister exclaimed in a voice several octaves lower than her normal pitch. She prostrated herself again before the queen. "We have traveled far and wide this night to bring warmth and cheer to your chilly Grace! May we enter your humble lodgings and warm ourselves from the bitter cold and bestow on you the gifts of Yule?"

"G-goat?" She managed again.

"Yes! Julbukk!" Anna corrected. "I'm the Yule goat!"

Elsa blinked.

"And this is Julenisse," she added, pointing a hand at Olaf.

A small sound escaped her Elsa's lips that Anna assumed to be the equivalent of a question mark.

"Julenisse! The jolly little Yule gnome that lives in your barn and protects your livestock, I hope you made him some porridge...or you know..he'll pluck your chickens or something."

"He'll do _what_?"

"Ugh." Anna was growing impatient with explanations so she dropped the disguise of her voice. "C'mon Elsa aren't you going to let us in?"

"Um..."

"Her Majesty is indeed kind!" The princess beamed before pushing passed her discombobulated sister and strolling into the study in heavy wool socks, pulling a large sack behind her. Elsa caught a whiff of something unpleasant and immediately brought a hand to her nose.

"God Jul Queen Elsa!" Olaf shouted, startling the queen again out of her confusion. She looked down see the little snowman sporting a wide grin beneath all the hair stuck around his mouth.

"Um...God Jul Olaf...but its not.."

"Do you like my hat?" He giggled.

"Yes its lovely but why..."

"And my beard?" He questioned before lowering his voice. "It's made of _goat_ hair."

So that's what that smell was.

"Ola...I mean Julenisse! Come help me with these decorations!" Anna's voice echoed from inside.

"Coming Anna!" The snowman clapped his little twig arms excitedly before grabbing the sack behind him .

Elsa's eyes were as big as saucers following the gnome as he grunted and pulled the burlap monstrosity through the doorway. When she turned she found Anna lighting every candle, wall sconce, and lamp in the room. "Really Elsa you're going to ruin your eyes working in the dark like this," she tutted. "Arendelle is going to have a queen with really poor ice-sight."

A snort erupted from behind the goat mask before she threw back her head and cackled. "_Ice__-sight_! Olaf!"

The snowman chortled as he began pulling a rope of greenery out of one of the sacks. "That's a good one Anna! You get it Elsa? Its because you're..."

"I get it Olaf, I get it," Elsa murmured while massaging her temples. "What I don't get is what in the world the two of you are doing here with all of this..."

"We are julebukking Elsa! We are partaking in the traditions of our people and bringing the festivities to our overworked queen so that she too may join in the celebrations that have been happening outside the gates for generations!" Anna finished her speech with a push her sleeves, arms folded across her chest. Elsa could sense more than see the wide toothy grin behind the goat mask.

The queen started to speak again only to be interrupted by her sister once more. "You see julebukking is..."

"I know what julbukking is Anna!" Elsa snapped.. "It's the custom of going door to door dressing up and singing songs, playing pranks, and giving out gifts between Julaften and New Years. I'm quite knowledgeable of customs. There's an extensive collection of customs on that book shelf Olaf is decorating over there dating back to the vikings."

Turquoise eyes blinked in the firelight. "So...the problem is...what?" Anna asked as she strung a bough of ivy and holly over the mantle above the hearth.

"Julaften is a fortnight away!" Elsa continued with exasperation.

"Oh! Well...see... I had this thought..."

There was an Anna phrase that usually didn't end well.

"That with all that's going on and you've been so busy planning everything for Yule, and I've been busy and there's gonna be so many people..an entire kingdom of people... for a week! Not to mention your birthday which I've been planning...but you know that..and I was trying to keep it small but the advisers kept adding to the guest list and now its gotten out of hand." Anna finished wrapping another string of garland around a candelabra before turning around to face her sister who, with the additional lighting, could now see a touch of sorrow in those big, watery...goat eyes.

Elsa softened immediately.

"I thought you liked the open gates."

"I do! I do! But all the people Elsa...the crowds...I know they make you uncomfortable."

The queen shrugged her shoulders. "It's just something I have to get used to. It comes with the job."

"I know, I know," Anna acknowledged as she reached into the sack and pulled out a circlet of holly and closed the distance between them. "And I have to get used to sharing you with all of those people. Which, if you hadn't noticed, I'm kinda selfish when it comes to you."

Elsa felt the heat blossom in her cheeks at her sister's statement and the sudden close proximity. It shouldn't have been anything new, yet her stomach was suddenly host to a massive horde of acrobatic butterflies as she watched the princess fumble with the greenery in her hands. If Anna was blushing too she couldn't begin to tell. And why would she be? All she said was that she was possessive of her sister whom she had lost so many years with, nothing more.

_Pull your weird self together Elsa. She's dressed like a goat in red underwear for goodness sake._

When she came back from the distant land of her thoughts, she felt Anna's fingers brushing against the top of her head causing her scalp to tingle and her heart to do a somersault in her chest. She swallowed thickly and looked up to see the fingers pulling the crown off her head, and with greater care than the queen had rarely witnessed before, Anna turned and placed the tiara on the desk.

Her eyes sparkled in the firelight when she returned on tiptoes to carefully replaced Elsa's crown with the wreath of leaves and berries she'd been holding. "I didn't know if we would get any time to ourselves to spend together like this...just us...so...I decided...to take the time when I had it. Besides, Olaf has been having the time of his life learning about Yule goats and Yule gnomes...Yule custom and songs...There! Perfect!" She finished adjusting the new crown and clasped her hands together in awe of her handiwork.

"So...will you celebrate with us?" Anna asked, those pleading eyes on display again.

"I really need to finish the invitations..."

"Please?" When she felt a warm hands press into her own, Elsa knew she was at the Yule goat's mercy and sighed in resignation.

"Alright. Alright."

"Yes!" The goat mask bobbed up and down in celebration with her sister's bouncing victory dance.

Elsa pulled her hands away and pressed her index fingers to her lips as she eyed Anna's outfit from top to bottom.

"But I have questions."

"Okay, shoot!"

"Where'd you get the long underwear?"

"They were papa's. I found them in one of his old trunks."

Elsa raised an eyebrow. "That's a little disturbing Anna..."

"Pfft...you think he actually ever wore these at some point?" Anna stretched the red wool for emphasis. "They look ridiculous! Probably a gift from some dignitary or something. Plus, they are unbearably itchy."

"Hm...and the.."

"Oh the mask?" I bought it from a craftsman in town! It's papier-mâché! Isn't it great?"

"Yes... but what about..."

"The boughs? We made them ourselves! Kristoff helped. Oh! Did you know his family is really good at weaving plants? We had to go out and collect the holly and ivy, and the pine leaves. It took nearly all day but look how much we made!" Anna motioned to the rest of the room.

Nearly every available fixture was wrapped in some sort of greenery or had a wreath hanging from it. Olaf had taken to decking the walls above his head which had resulted in the roping hanging from every wall a little more than three feet off the ground.

Elsa nodded with her fingers still poised on her lips while Olaf merrily decorated the bottom shelf of her law bookcase. Turning her attention back to Anna, she pointed at furry collar hanging off her shoulders.

"But what about this...this smelly hair?"

"Mr Halvorson's farm!" Olaf answered excitedly, suddenly standing in between the two of them.

"Oh Anna please tell me you didn't shave someone's goat."

"What? No! I had permission! I swear!"

"It was a hairy goat!" The snowman babbled on. "Anna brushed him and I have a beard now! And oh! I got to play with baby Villsvin!"

"Villsvin?"

"Mr. Halvorson had a little piglet that took up with Olaf." Anna said, pulling the red stocking cap back over an escaping hair twig. "It was the cutest thing Elsa! He looked just like those old paintings of the nisse in the barn with the pigs."

"Yup! Mr. Halvorson says I can come visit anytime at least until Villsvin gets old enough to go to work at the market and make sausage. Is sausage hard to make? I hope they don't work him too hard. He's such a little fella."

Both sisters paled immediately.

"Ah well...I'm sure he'll be great at it!" Olaf reached into the pocket of his little vest. "Here's your brush back Elsa!" He waggled the brush up towards her with a large grin.

Elsa's eye twitched. "You used..._my _brush?" Snatching it from Olaf's outstretched fingers she saw tuffs of goat hair embedded deep into the bristles. The queen brought it to her nose and gingerly sniffed it before grimacing and glaring at Anna.

"Why did you use MY brush?!" The queen shook it threateningly at the Yule goat.

"That was your brush?" Anna squeaked before hissing down at Olaf. "I told you to find an old brush!"

The snowman shrugged. "Well it looked old."

"I've had that brush forever," Elsa muttered forlornly.

"I'm so so sorry Elsa! I didn't realize it was yours. I promise I'll get you a new one!" Anna gingerly pulled the brush away from the stricken blonde and tossed it in the corner. She took her by the hands and pulled her towards the sofa by the fireplace. "C'mon I have something to cheer you up!"

"It was my favorite brush," Elsa grumbled as she plopped on the cushion with a huff.

"Wait...just wait right there...I'll be right back," Anna motioned at her to stay before scampering out into the hallway. She returned shortly carrying a serving tray with two covered dishes and two spoons clanging against the metal. Carefully she placed it on the floor in front of Elsa, tucked her legs in and sat behind it. With a flourish she removed one of the lids revealing something that the queen recognized immediately.

"Oh my god is that...?"

"Gerda's rice pudding? Yes it is!" Anna pushed the mask above her face and flashed a wide grin. Elsa immediately forgot about the brush and dropped off the sofa to her knees on the other side of the tray. "I figured you'd miss dinner this evening," The princess chuckled. "I had her make it special...which means I had to beg because its not Julaften yet." The grin on her face suddenly became devious as she removed the lid from the second dish. "She also made this."

Elsa gasped. "Marzipan pig!"

"A pig! Yay!" Olaf exclaimed as he rolled up with a large log under his feet. He plopped down on his bottom with a crunch against the bark. He clapped his twigs together excitedly at the small pink confection. "He looks just like Villsvin!"

"Olaf what in the world?" The queen admonished, eyeing the large chunk of wood.

"It's your Yule log Elsa!" The snowman smiled broadly and patted the timber. "Kristoff took us up into the mountain and we didn't stop searching until we found the bestest most perfect log in the whole forest!"

A smile spread across her face as she looked between her snowman and her sister. Olaf in his stocking cap with his wiggling feet and little chuckles of happiness as he looked at the both of them. She didn't think he could be any happier if he were in a field of wildflowers at that moment. And for the first time that night she had a good look at Anna.

Elsa could see the fatigue circling her eyes and subtly tensing the muscles in her jaw. Bangs were sprawled haphazardly from beneath the mask and plastered to her forehead. Her hair fell around her face with copper waves that shimmered in the firelight. Despite how tired she must have been, the smile on her face never faltered. Anna's smile didn't reveal anything but happiness, pride, and love...and it was all directed at her.

"You guys really went all out on this didn't you?" She asked softly.

"We wanted to do something special for you," Olaf answered, leaning back on the log, the snowflakes from his flurry settling into the grooves of the bark.

"Didn't Kristoff...want to join us?"

"Oh no no, he was insistent on his absence," Anna reassured with a shake of her head. "I believe his words were, 'There is no way in hell you're dressing me up as a goat and parade me around in front of your sister Anna, I have standards!'" She snorted. "This from the guy who talks to _and_ for his reindeer."

Elsa hid a chuckle behind her hand.

"And anyway he thinks we need this...time," the princess fidgeted with the lid and suddenly found the fur around her collar very interesting. "He was glad to help though."

The clang of the metal made Elsa jump and Olaf roll off the back of the log as Anna slammed the lid back down over the pig. "Now then!" She beamed. "There's an almond in this pudding, and for the third time in a ro...um for the third consec...for the third time that we've ever done this...I am going to find it and win the pig!"

Elsa's jaw dropped open at the claim. "I'll have you know you were a small child and _I_ let you win!"

Anna's tongue darted out from between her lips and blew a raspberry towards the queen. She grabbed up the spoons and held them out between them. "Choose your weapon then Your Majesty and watch me win again!"

"Oh that pig is mine Your Highness," Elsa countered, taking one of the spoons.

Both of them stared down into the bowl of dessert that was giving off a delicious aroma of sweet vanilla and cream with the slight tartness of the berry sauce drizzled on top.

"Are you ready?"

"Born ready."

"Three. Two. One. Go!"

The sisters dived in with their spoons, stuffing their faces and completely forgoing years of proper dining etiquette. Anna decided to claim an edge and dropped herself lower to the bowl to scoop bigger and quicker bites into her mouth. Elsa saw this and tucked in to her own side of the bowl digging her spoon deeper to the bottom. She could feel the red sauce dribbling down her chin but she couldn't be bothered to care, not with victory at stake. Anna must have really been going primal because Elsa could hear her grunting and moving around the bowl.

"Shtay on yow schide of the bow Anna!"

"Urm amf!"

The grunting continued drawing closer, and just when she was about to reach out and push Anna back over to her side she felt something warm and wet press against her cheek.

Okay...that decidedly felt very much _not _like Anna.

When she looked up, Elsa found herself staring at a wiggling pink snout and two bright beady little eyes. She blinked once. Twice. The porridge trickled from the corner of her open mouth as she stared at the.._thing_...that had just touched her. There was a chewing mouth attached to that snout munching their pudding happily while those eyes just..stared...at her. Her spoon dropped from her hand with a clack.

The pig looked at her spoon then back to the bowl where it rooted down into the custard again and resurfaced to grunt at the gaping woman as it smacked its mouth loudly. When it crunched down on the almond between its teeth, Elsa finally found her voice.

So she screamed.

The scream set off a wild chain of events that involved Anna losing the balance on her elbows and falling chin first into what was left of the rice pudding, the pig becoming startled and bolting, Olaf rolling off the Yule log once more and losing his head, and Elsa's powers reacting to her fear and coating the entire floor of her study in a sheet of ice.

When Anna surfaced with a sputter from the bowl wearing a gelatinous beard, she understandably had questions. She pushed the bowl away with a shove, wiped the pudding from her face and looked around frantically.

"Elsa what...?"

"Pig!" Her sister shrieked leaning back against the sofa, eyes wide and a hand was clutched to her chest.

"Pig?"

There was a squeal as a pink projectile slammed into the serving tray, sending the bowls flying with the pig sailing across the floor on a metal sled.

"Pig!" Anna gasped and scrambled to her feet to give chase.

"Villsvin!" Olaf exclaimed as the pig slid passed his head. "Where did you come from?"

"Catch the pig Olaf!" The princess shouted as she slipped awkwardly after the animal in a hot pursuit of flailing limbs and cursing.

Olaf's body stood up, brushed itself off, and paused to admire the ice beneath its feet.

"Hey! Don't just stand there! Go get Villsvin!" His head demanded. The body threw its arms in the air and flailed in the direction of the chase.

The metal tray crashed into the wall sending Villsvin sliding backwards across the the floor between Anna's legs who's mantra of _glide, pivot, glide, pivot, _was doing little to enhance her lack of skating abilities, made even more terrible with slippery wool socks. Olaf's body pushed up behind her to help steady the princess. They rounded the corner and headed back in the direction of the squealing quarry who was busy undecking the halls in his panic.

When Elsa finally came to her senses and her feet she turned just in time to see the pig with a trail of garlands slide behind her desk shortly followed by three quarters of a snowman and a princess going way too fast to stop. Olaf's body jarred the desk with a mighty _whump _while Anna pitched forward and sailed over the mahogany surface sending all her paperwork soaring into the air. The queen squared her jaw and clenched her teeth. The temperature of the room dropped rapidly as the anger boiled up from her throat.

"That's ENOUGH!" Elsa's voice boomed through the air and into the ice beneath them. Most of the candles extinguished in a blast of cold air. The room was dead silent save for the crackle of the recovering fire and the determined march of her heels on the ice as she strode towards the calamity. Her sister was fumbling through the fallen papers on her hands and knees trying to gain enough balance to get up. With a wave of her hand, the queen bid the ice to vanish before bending down to grab Anna by the arm and help her to her feet. When she could see well enough that she was unhurt save for the mask falling back down on her face, Elsa walked over to the front of the desk and pulled Olaf's body up from the floor and watched it briefly as it waddled off in the direction of the head.

"Pig," she called out to the cowering animal under her desk. "Pig come here."

The queen straightened to her full height and her body became stiff and resolute. "Pig. Here. Now." She pointed to floor in front of her and steeled her voice. "Right now."

Much to Anna's slack-jawed amazement, the little pig clipped out from under the desk and hurriedly trotted over to Elsa with a mouth full of squeaks and grunts. When she saw her sister bend down, pick him up and tuck him under an arm, Anna wondered silently if she was dreaming. She pinched herself to make sure as she rounded the desk and stood in front of them, staring at the pig who seemed ridiculously content.

"Elsa! Anna! I'm so sorry!" A complete Olaf came running up to them in a panic. "I don't know how he got here! He must have stowed away in my sack!"

Villsvin, seeing someone he recognized, oinked and wiggled his nose happily. The snowman smiled and reached up to pat him on the head. "You sneaky little devil."

Elsa grabbed the bell in her free hand. Miraculously it was the only thing that remained on top of her desk after Anna had cleared it. With a flick of her wrist a small "ding" sounded in the room. Before Anna could even guess what that was for a deep voice materialized next to her.

"You summoned me Your Majesty?"

Anna jumped with a squawk and looked up at the burly man. "Kai! You scared me to death! How'd you even get here?"

When the chamberlain turned to address the princess he must have been startled himself when he saw her attire, his eyebrows rising a whole two centimeters.

"Oh good heavens," he muttered.

"Kai, help Master Olaf take this pig down to the royal stables," Elsa said as she handed over the grunting bundle. "See that he's well taken care of for the night and has a warm place to sleep. We'll be taking him home in the morning."

"Yes of course your majesty," he responded with a bow, cradling the swine in his arms. There was no hesitation, no questions. It was as if taking pigs from the queen was the most natural act in the world. Anna watched the butler turn and retreat towards the door with Olaf at his side sharing all his new found knowledge about pigs. Just when she thought he was going to say absolutely nothing about this entire situation he walked in on, Kai turned back towards the sisters just as he was about to cross the threshold.

"Queen Elsa?"

"Yes Kai?"

"Shall I send someone up to clean...all this?" He followed his statement with a gesture of his hand to the chaos of papers, evergreen branches, and rice pudding scattered on the floor.

"No. Thank you. I'll take care of it."

"Very good ma'am."

"Kai wait!"

"Yes Your Majesty?"

The queen carefully stepped over the documents and pine needles to the strewn serving bowls and searched the floor until she found what she was looking for. With an afterthought she straightened her crumpled dress before taking the few steps to the doorway. Once there looked down at Villsvin and presented him the object in her hand.

"Here. You won this."

Villsvin sniffed at the sugary treat in her hand before grabbing the marzipan pig up and smacking his mouth greedily.

"Thank you. That will be all," Elsa announced as she turned back towards the wrecked room.

"Of course it will," Kai responded tonelessly and carried the pig out into the hallway with Olaf in tow congratulating him on his winnings.

A frustrated sigh escaped her lips as she surveyed the damage to all the work she had put in for the day scattered like leaves on the wind. It was going to be a very long night of reorganizing she thought as she grabbed a handful of documents. A sniffle interrupted the resignation to her fate as she looked over to see Anna sorting through the mess and wiping uselessly at the mask on her face.

"Anna..."

"I'll clean all this up," she mumbled softly. "I'm really sorry. It was a stupid idea and all I managed to do was to ruin your evening and make a huge mess out of everything." She tried again to wipe her nose on her sleeve only to bump into the mask again.

"Ruin my evening?" Elsa let the papers fall from her hand back to the floor as stepped over to Anna and wrapping an arm around her shoulder and giving it a squeeze. "No. None of that." She slipped the bundle from her sister's hand and lead her back towards the sofa but stopped short of the log in their path.

"Here," she said. "Help me get this Yule log into the fire."

"O...okay."

With a matched set of groans they lifted the log and rolled it to the back of the fireplace with a hiss and a shower of sparks.

"There," The queen smiled at their effort and dusted her hands together. "Come. Let's sit and watch it for a while hmm?"

The goat nodded slightly and allowed herself to be lead again and placed upon the cushions overlooking the hearth. She let her body sink into the plush surroundings in the hope that it would just swallow her up and away from another one of her brilliant muck ups. Elsa sat down and scooted in close beside her.. They sat there for a few minutes staring at the fire until Anna was ready to speak.

"I just wanted to do something special for you Elsa," she began. "I wanted us to share something memorable this Yuletide, experience something new."

The queen chuckled. "Oh...this was definitely memorable...and new...don't you think? "

Anna lowered her head. "Yeah but..."

"Hey." Elsa lifted the the chin beneath the mask until they were facing each other. Sky blue eyes searched for the darkened turquoise in the holes of the mask. "Any Yule I get to share with you is going to be memorable, special, and the most welcome kind of new. Every single moment I get to spend with you is special Anna. Even amidst all the chaos of ruling a kingdom and all of these people coming in and out our doors I still find memories I want to hold on to and experiences I've never dreamed of with you."

"You...you do?"

"I do, and I want you to know you don't have to try so hard anymore," Elsa gave her a sad smile. "I've watched you exhaust yourself over the years just trying to get my attention. I know you didn't think I noticed, but I did. I always noticed."

"You did?" Anna's voice quivered.

"I did. Had I the courage then that I do now, I would have told you so. I would have showed you how much I cared in return." The queen wrapped her arms behind her sister, pulling her in and hugging her tightly.

"So thank you, Anna. Thank you for this gift you brought to me this evening."

"But...I didn't bring you a gift Elsa. Anna's voice was muffled against her shoulder. "You're not getting your present until Julaften."

"I'm not huh?" Elsa reached down and poked the younger woman in the ribs inciting a squeal for her efforts.

"No, the gift you've given me tonight is far greater than anything that could be wrapped up and tied with a bow."

Anna pulled back from the hug, looking at her sister questioningly. A single tear fell in a rivulet down the queen's face.

"Your time Anna. All of the hard work you put into doing all of this...for me. After everything I put you through the idea that you would even want to spend one second around me is a miracle in itself. I cherish it. You have no idea how much."

The princess lifted the mask from her face revealing her own tear filled eyes and a quivering smile. "I cherish it too Elsa. I cherish you."

Elsa reached out and wiped at the tears on Anna's cheeks with the pads of her thumbs before she let out a half sob, half chuckle.

"I got serenaded by a gnome and a goat!" The blonde's smile grew wider. "And I got to eat rice pudding with a pig!"

Anna giggled and then completely by accident, she snorted. This caused a whole new round of laughter between them. When they finally caught their breath Elsa's expression softened again and she took her sister's chin in her thumb and forefinger.

"So that's enough bleating from you little goat. There's not a thing torn down from the wall or scattered across the floor that can't wait to be dealt with later. Let's enjoy the rest of our early Yuletide."

Anna nodded before snuggling into the queen, wrapping her arms around her waist and leaning against her shoulder. A collective sigh of contentment escaping both their lips as they stared off into the warm glow in front of them.

Elsa took to running her fingers through Anna's hair, repeatedly smoothing it behind a freckled ear. The fire was hypnotic. Swirling and dancing and feasting on the wood. It seemed to be having quite a merry Yule as well. After a time Elsa begin to sing softly.

"_See the blazing yule before us._

_Fa-la-la-la-la la-la-la-la."_

Anna smiled and quickly joined in.

"_Strike the harp and join the chorus_

_Fa-la-la-la-la la-la-la-la."_

"_Follow me in merry measure_

_Fa-la-la-la-la-la la-la-la_

_While I tell of Yuletide treasure._

_Fa-la-la-la-la la-la-la-la."_

The last stanza earned a tighter squeeze around Elsa's waist. She chuckled fondly and nuzzled the into the untamed mane on Anna's head. When she breathed deeply she could smell still smell goat hair of course, but there was something else. She smelled the evergreen from the boughs she had roped together. The sap from the forest where they had sawed the yule log. The hickory smoke from the fires in town where she had picked up the mask, and the smell of dirt from the farm. It all formed a rich scent that was both invigorating and intoxicating.

"Elsa?"

"Hmmmm?" She droned lazily, her eyes closed to the world around them.

"You're not going to let Villsvin become a sausage are you?"

"Of course not," Elsa responded with a wave of her free hand. "I'll pardon him or something."

Her head rest pulled away to meet her eyes with a confused, furrowed brow and pursed lips.

"What?" She tilted her head. "That sounds like something I can do."

Anna laughed. "My sister...the great Queen Elsa of Arendelle, Wielder of Ice and Snow, Whisperer and Pardoner of Pigs." She twirled her hands with fanfare.

"Hey!" Elsa said with mock indigence as she adjusted the crown of holly on her head. "Pigs know authority when they see it!"

"It would appear so," the princess continued to chuckle.

"Besides...it is custom to offer gifts to the yulebukkers once the singing and feasting is at an end. So there you go...a pig pardon."

"But what do I get?" Anna whined and leaned further into her sister.

"What do you mean what do you get?"

"That's Olaf's pig...I want a gift of my own!"

Elsa studied the bright freckled face staring up at her. "What is it you'd like then little goat?"

Anna put a finger to her lips and pondered for a moment rolling her eyes up in concentration until an idea struck.

"Chocolate!"

"Chocolate?" Elsa laughed. "Anna, you have cleaned out every single stash of chocolate in this room! Even that really good stuff from Belgium."

"Mmmm oh yes," Anna closed her eyes with a fond smile of remembrance. "That chocolate was...exquisite."

The queen harrumphed. "Yes, and I was quite sure you would never find it tucked away in that book on 16th century economics."

"I have a nose when it comes to chocolate Elsa."

"Clearly. Dare I say that it might rival my own," she responded with a grin.

"Okay so...no chocolate," Anna put pressed her finger against her lips again. "So how about..." She reached into one of her wool socks and pulled out a sprig green adorned with small white berries and held it up over her head. "A kiss then?"

Elsa's eyes grew wide. "A kiss...what?"

"A kiss from Her Majesty, The Pardoner of Pigs!" Anna smirked. "Come'on its mistletoe!" She waved it in the air for emphasis. "I picked it myself!"

"But...I...um...don't you want to save that for someone?" Elsa could feel the heat rising up her neck.

"Nah!" The princess shook her head. "Just plant one right here!" She turned her head slightly and pointed at her cheek. "You don't want to make Baldr's mama cry do you?"

"I don't think that's how it goes Anna..."

"Please? Its festive!"

Elsa swallowed the gathering pool of saliva in the back of her throat. "Very well." Already her legs had begun to shake. Perhaps it was a good thing that she was sitting down. "But then you have to go take a bath. You smell like a barnyard, and due to close association it would seem I do as well."

"Deal!" Her sister chirped and leaned her cheek in towards Elsa's trembling lips.

"Well...alright then." Her voice was quivering with the rest of her. She didn't really understand why her brain was making a big deal out of this. She had kissed Anna's cheeks plenty of times when they were little. There was no reason why it should be any different now.

Elsa closed the distance between them only for Anna to pull a fast one at the last second and turn her head so that instead of a dirty cheek, the queen found a set of full pliable lips pressed against her own. They were unbelievably warm and slightly chapped from the weather. If she could articulate how they felt at the moment however, she would have deemed them the softest things she had ever touched. All of the intoxicating smells from before...she could actually taste them now mingled in a bouquet of vanilla and sugar from the pudding. Every nerve ending was suddenly on fire. Blood was boiling in her veins. Her lungs burned into ash and she could no longer breathe. It was the end and beginning of existence, and it was hands down the best thing she had ever felt.

Anna's eyes were screwed shut. Elsa knew this because her own eyes were open and as wide as the room. She didn't dare to move, didn't dare to blink, didn't dare to exist anywhere outside of what was happening between them. It wasn't until Anna's eyelids loosened and her lips relaxed against Elsa's that she found the ability slip her own eyes shut where she lost the rest of herself to a burning and divine oblivion.

It was minutes, but it felt like hours later when they slowly and reluctantly pulled apart. Anna blinked slowly in her drunken stupor and clacked her tongue against the roof of her mouth like she was savoring a piece of fine Belgian chocolate.

The phoenix in Elsa's lungs resurrected with a quavering wheeze when she was finally able to draw a breath. Her chest was a forge with a hammering heart at its center pounding out hot steel against the anvil of her rib cage. There was no other thought that could form in her oxygen starved brain save for the one that desperately desired to experience all of that again.

"Wow..." Anna breathed and rolled her gaze upward to the dazed eyes of her queen. "He was right."

"Wh...?" Elsa's tongue felt thick and swollen, it was completely lethargic in its ability to move.

"He...was..._right."_

"Ann..a?"

"Kristoff."

"Kri...?"

A smile began to curl up into her cheeks as the haze of her eyes fell away and were replaced with sparkling clarity...before morphing into a scowl. "He was _so_ right that son of a..." Anna never finished her statement before her stocking feet hit the floor and she skidded immediately to the door and jerked it open. Turning back holding the sprig of mistletoe tightly in both hands, she flashed Elsa another smile. It was the biggest most beautiful smile the queen had ever seen.

"I gotta go tell him! Then I'm gonna take a bath Elsa! I'll see you at bedtime! Unless...its weird now...its not weird now is it?"

Somehow Elsa's neck managed to move her head from side to side while her tongue managed a "N..."

"Good. That's good. I'm glad," Anna breathed, her face glowing with radiance from the firelight and something internal. Slowly the smile disappeared as she pulled the goat mask back down over her face.

"God Jul Elsa!" The goat proclaimed as she pranced out into the corridor and pulled the door to behind her with a slam.

She didn't even give the queen a chance to answer.

"G...Go...God...God..Ju...An.."

And that was okay, because it was going to take a while.


End file.
